Mark Lawrenson is backing Spurs to beat Watford this afternoon.
Mark Lawrenson
Pundit Mark Lawrenson has told BBC Sport that he thinks Tottenham Hotspur will beat Watford 2-0 at White Hart Lane this afternoon.
Spurs are back at home this weekend after two away trips over the last week, with Mauricio Pochettino’s men coming away from visits to Burnley and Swansea City with six points after respective 2-0 and 3-1 wins.
Wednesday’s victory over Swansea came late in the day, as having trailed 1-0 for most of the encounter, three goals in the last six minutes handed Tottenham all three points.
They remain seven points behind league leaders Chelsea, but with star striker Harry Kane in contention to play against Watford today following an injury lay-off, Spurs will be hoping to chase down their London rivals.
Their visitors to White Hart Lane this afternoon are Watford, who have also picked up two wins over the last week with victories over Sunderland and West Bromwich Albion at Vicarage Road.
This time though, the Hornets are on the road, and manager Walter Mazzarri has major problems on his hands, as the likes of Etienne Capoue and Heurelho Gomes – two former Spurs players – are doubts, as are Troy Deeney, Tom Cleverley, Abdoulaye Doucoure and Valon Behrami, whilst Miguel Britos is suspended having been sent off against West Brom.
With Mazzarri down to the bare bones, Spurs will be hoping for a repeat of their New Year’s Day win over Watford, when they hammered the Hornets 4-1 away from home.
Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino celebrates
Today, pundit Mark Lawrenson is backing Spurs for a 2-0 victory, noting that Pochettino’s men just don’t give up, as shown by the win over Swansea – and with Lawrenson believing that Watford will find it hard to stop Spurs, he’s told BBC Sport that he’s anticipating a comfortable win for Spurs.
“Tottenham’s late comeback to beat Swansea underlined how they just keep going and don’t give up, which is a great thing for any team to have about them,” said Lawrenson. “People thought Mauricio Pochettino’s side would struggle for goals without the injured Harry Kane, but they have now scored seven in three games without him, and have won all of them too. I don’t think it will be easy for Tottenham on Saturday – Watford showed that by beating in-form West Brom on Tuesday.”
“The Hornets will put up more of a fight than they did when Spurs brushed them aside at Vicarage Road on New Year’s Day, and they cannot be any worse defensively than they were that day, but it is hard to see them stopping this Tottenham side. Spurs’ title hopes are reliant on Chelsea slipping up – but a second-place finish would be a great achievement and more progress for them. They are still in the FA Cup as well, of course, and they just have to keep plugging away,” he added.
What is your prediction for Tottenham v Watford?
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